Last Updated on May 19, 2019
On October 9, 2014, a group from Winnipeg, Manitoba decided to visit Shoal Lake No.40 First Nation to learn their story.
Winnipeg has been extracting its water from Shoal Lake through an aquaduct that was built almost 100 years ago.
Shoal Lake No.40 has been on a boil water advisory for over 15 years. They spend $240,000 annually to import water to their community.
Until three years ago, the only access this community has to the mainland was a small barge, or the frozen lake during winter.
For the last century, this community has been fighting for a road to solve their forced isolation issue. This “Freedom Road” will make it possible to receive a water treatment plant and allow the community to safely access the mainland.
Across the world right now, Indigenous peoples are facing a renewed assault on their lands, rights, and ways of life.
From extractive industries pushing deeper into ancestral territories, to governments rolling back hard-won protections,
the threat is global—and it is growing.
What makes this moment especially dangerous is how little attention it receives.
Stories like this are disappearing in real time. Mainstream media
barely covers it and the coverage is fragmented. The public is left without the context
needed to understand what is truly at stake.
That is exactly why IC Magazine exists..
For more than 20 years, IC has reported on Indigenous struggles worldwide — consistently, independently, and without compromise.
We don’t follow news cycles; we trace patterns. We don’t sensationalize; we provide context.
And when the world looks away, we stay focused.
But this work is increasingly difficult to sustain.
We refuse to lock our reporting behind a paywall. We don’t sell access through subscriptions.
And we don’t answer to advertisers. IC Magazine survives solely because readers like you choose to
support independent Indigenous journalism.
Please donate today if you can. Every contribution helps us to continue this crucial work.
Thank you,
John Ahni Schertow
Founder and Editor in Chief
